The Jets rookie quarterback is preparing to compete for the team’s starting job with Mark Sanchez and David Garrard. He is not making any bold predictions or talking any trash. In fact, he threw some praise Sanchez’s way yesterday.

“He’s a professional, he’s done it for several years and he has handled himself well, in my opinion,” Smith said on 98.7 ESPN Radio. “Everything he’s done, the ups and the downs, I think the overall perception of him might be kind of swayed, depending on the games he has played. But I think he’s a pretty good quarterback. I look forward to competing with him and being around him.”

Smith handled the questions well, avoiding the topic of whether he thinks he’ll be the Jets’ starter. He revisited slipping out of the first round of the NFL Draft and said he did not even know he could come back for day two to walk across the stage. The Jets took Smith with the 39th pick, ending his wait.

“I ended up in the place I ultimately should’ve been in,” Smith said. “The Jets were the team that wanted to select me. It only took one team to fall in love with me, and that’s what happened. I’m in a great position.”

As for reports he was on his cell phone during pre-draft interviews with coaches and team executives, Smith said it is not true.

“I know better than to be texting in front of general managers and guys who ultimately will be my bosses,” he said.